1. Field of the Invention
The subject invention generally pertains to lashing tarpaulins and more specifically to a system particularly suited for lashing a tarpaulin over an open bed truck trailer.
2. Description of Related Art
A tractor/trailer rig comprising a truck (also known as a tractor) pulling an open bed trailer is often used for hauling cargo over-the-road. To protect the cargo, a tarpaulin (also known as a tarp) is laid over the load, and an elastic cord is used for securing the tarp to the trailer. The cord is usually laced between a series of D-rings on the tarp and a series of hooks or anchors on the trailer's perimeter (also known as a rub/tie rail).
It can be quite time consuming to sequentially thread the cord through each individual D-ring, it can be challenging to adjust the length of the cord to suit the size of the load, and it can be unpleasant to lash a load under adverse weather conditions. Although a variety of lashing methods have been developed, they all have their drawbacks.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,783,312, for instance, provides a creative way of anchoring a cord to an open bed trailer, but the cord still needs to be sequentially threaded through individual D-rings.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,900,204 discloses a hook that couples an open net to a truck that does not have its own hooks or anchors. But, conventional open bed trailers already have hook-like anchors, so there is no need for the '204 hook in such applications. Note, the '204 hook (item 31, FIG. 4 of the '204 patent) is not used for vehicles that have their own pre-existing anchors (see FIGS. 1, 2, 5 and 6 of the '204 patent). Moreover, the anchors of conventional open bed trailers are designed to hold a cord, not another hook. A cord can be readily slipped over the end of today's anchors, but the hook of the '204 patent just adds a redundant part to an already functional lashing system.
Although numerous other lashing systems disclose various types of hooks, none of the systems address the time-consuming problem of having to thread a cord through a series of D-rings or apertures on the tarp and then having to lash that cord to pre-existing anchors on a conventional open bed trailer.